editorNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94NPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Karen Grigsby BatesTue, 18 Jul 2017 01:17:10 +0000Karen Grigsby Bateshttp://peoriapublicradio.org
Karen Grigsby BatesCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Writers Launch #EbonyOwes Twitter Campaign In Demand For Back Payhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/writers-launch-ebonyowes-twitter-campaign-demand-back-pay
77938 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgMon, 17 Jul 2017 20:28:00 +0000Writers Launch #EbonyOwes Twitter Campaign In Demand For Back PayKaren Grigsby BatesOctavia Butler used to say she remembers exactly when she decided to become a science fiction writer. She was 9 years old and saw a 1954 B-movie called Devil Girl from Mars, and two things struck her. First: "Geez, I can write a better story than that!" And second: "Somebody got paid for writing that story!" If they could, she decided, then she could, too. Eventually she did exactly that. Octavia Estelle Butler became one of the world's premier science fiction writers, the first black female science fiction writer to reach national prominence, and the only writer in her genre to receive a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship. ("You have a Genius Grant," Charlie Rose said in a 2000 interview. "They don't call it that," she corrected him firmly; "somebody probably made that up.") When she died in 2006, she was lauded as a pioneer, an icon and one of America's best writers. Tracing a writer's evolution "Octavia Butler: Telling My Stories" is an exhibit currently at the Huntington Library , inOctavia Butler: Writing Herself Into The Storyhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/octavia-butler-writing-herself-story
77607 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgMon, 10 Jul 2017 10:36:00 +0000Octavia Butler: Writing Herself Into The StoryKaren Grigsby BatesThis week in race: Bill Maher crosses a line; Kevin Hart takes a pass on President Trump; a Cosby Kid stands up for Dr. Huxtable. Let's get to it. America's Favorite Dad showed up in court, and one of his TV children was there . Keshia Knight Pulliam, who played Rudy Huxtable, helped steer him through the press gantlet and into a Philadelphia courtroom, where Cosby is on trial for sexual assault. There's fallout, still, from Bill Maher's Friday show, in which he talked with Sen. Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican, and declared himself a "house n*****." The comment came after Sasse invited him to see how beautiful his state was by coming out and working in the fields. Black Twitter — and lots of other people's — exploded. Sen. Al Franken, a Minnesota Democrat, canceled his next-day appearance . There were calls for Maher to be fired, and plenty of arguments around free speech and the responsible use of it. In the end Maher apologized, and the show went on. More on the comedy front: DonaldThis Week In Race: Cosby Trial Begins; No Trump Jokes For Kevin Harthttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-cosby-trial-begins-no-trump-jokes-kevin-hart
76264 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgSat, 10 Jun 2017 10:00:00 +0000This Week In Race: Cosby Trial Begins; No Trump Jokes For Kevin HartKaren Grigsby BatesCan white artists understand the racial traumas people of color undergo in America enough to apply them to their work? Creating art about cultures other than your own — especially of populations that have been marginalized or oppressed — has once again come under fire. The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis decided to dismantle a sculpture that proved particularly offensive and painful to the Native community in that city. The installation "Scaffold" by artist Sam Durant depicts parts of actual scaffolds and gallows used in government-sanctioned executions of Native Americans, including the hanging of 38 Dakota men in 1862. That was a federally ordered execution by President Abraham Lincoln. A very different reaction happened when the celebrated Whitney Biennial featured a painting of Emmett Till in his open casket. Although there was significant blowback , the Whitney kept "Open Casket" on display because the Biennial's co-curators, Christopher Y. Lew and Mia Locks, said artist DanaThis Week In Race: Art Angst, A Chess Champ, Ramadan Feastshttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-art-angst-chess-champ-ramadan-feasts
75865 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 02 Jun 2017 08:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Art Angst, A Chess Champ, Ramadan FeastsKaren Grigsby BatesTennis queen Serena Williams is serious about trying new things this year. In addition to becoming engaged and being pregnant, La Serena has taken on the challenge of helping to diversify Silicon Valley — a task that might be hardest of all. Williams has joined the board of SurveyMonkey . The privately-held survey company was headed by Dave Goldberg, who died suddenly in 2015. His widow, Sheryl Sandberg (COO of Facebook) and Williams are good friends. Looks like Williams will be leaning in at SurveyMonkey to work on diversifying that company, and maybe by her presence, encouraging other tech boards to think differently. (Maybe it's a trend? Apple just announced Denise Young Smith, former head of Apple's global HR, has been promoted to VP of its diversity and inclusion efforts .) Oh, and don't expect Williams' Silicon Valley presence to be a drive-by: she'll likely be spending more time there, since her fiancé is Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. Reverse migration? Chicagoans areThis Week In Race: Jesuits Give Back, Serena's New Gig, Latino Grads Hat Uphttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-jesuits-give-back-serenas-new-gig-latino-grads-hat
75542 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 26 May 2017 08:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Jesuits Give Back, Serena's New Gig, Latino Grads Hat UpKaren Grigsby BatesOh, Code Switch fam: Has there ever been such a week? Because of the virtual smorgasbord of unfortunate news, you may have skipped putting these on your plate. Dig in. Keep a chaser of Pepto handy. In policing, it's feeling like a lethal version of Groundhog Day . This time, a Tulsa, Okla., police officer who shot and killed an unarmed man with his hands raised was acquitted of first-degree manslaughter . Officer Betty Shelby says when she came upon Terrence Crutcher outside his SUV, she thought he was going for a gun when he reached into his car. Crutcher was unarmed. "I did everything I could to stop this," Shelby said. "Crutcher's death is his fault." Gov. Mary Fallon asked for calm, even as she recognized people have the right to disagree with the verdict. In other policing news: Former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke, a man who compared Black Lives Matter to the KKK, is now going to be an assistant secretary in the Department of Homeland Security . He'll be liaising, to useThis Week In Race: Dave Says Sorry, Coin Controversy, Health Hazards Of Segregationhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-dave-says-sorry-coin-controversy-health-hazards-segregation
75194 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 19 May 2017 08:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Dave Says Sorry, Coin Controversy, Health Hazards Of SegregationKaren Grigsby BatesA lot of things in this country rely on information gathered by the U.S. Census Bureau every 10 years. Congressional districts. Federally funded public works (bridges, tunnels) and emergency services. Decisions based on population estimates affect everyone in ways large and small, so an accurate count of who lives where is critical. That's why it was big news when the current Census director, John Thompson, announced he's stepping down. The abrupt departure left Census-watchers worried. Science magazine outlines the effect a leaderless Census Bureau might have. His departure happened just as Thompson and his staff were trying to figure out how to modernize the Census count, including a new approach to how Hispanics/Latinx would be categorized. Remember the presidents of HBCUs who squeezed into a photo op with the president a few weeks ago? After saying "cheese" for the photographer, the president cheesed them off by indicating he might cut $20 million of promised federal support forThis Week In Race: Census Worries, Yellowface And Kendall Jenner. Again.http://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-census-worries-yellowface-and-kendall-jenner-again
74832 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 12 May 2017 08:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Census Worries, Yellowface And Kendall Jenner. Again.Karen Grigsby BatesNot a good week for black folk seeing justice for police violence. Whether you're a 15-year-old honor student (Jordan Edwards) Or a grown man (Alton Sterling) Sometimes, however, the moral arc of the universe does bend toward justice , eventually. Even if it takes time, as was the case with South Carolina officer Michael Slager, who shot Walter Scott in the back multiple times in 2015. The state's case against him ended in a mistrial, but Slager pleaded guilty ahead of his federal trial for the violation of Scott's civil rights. Barnard College dean Avis Hinkson tells students don't play when you step up to receive your diploma: It's a life-changing achievement, Hinkson wrote in The Huffington Post —especially for women of color. Hinkson refuses to downplay the importance of the moment, even though some of her students told her they don't want to wear their mortarboards (caps): " I wear my cap and gown because the only cap given to my grandmothers was a maid's cap," Hinkson writes. AndThis Week In Race: Movies, Memoirs And Fans Who Didn't Hit It Out Of The Parkhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-movies-memoirs-and-fans-who-didnt-hit-it-out-park
74489 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 05 May 2017 08:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Movies, Memoirs And Fans Who Didn't Hit It Out Of The ParkKaren Grigsby BatesFox News has been under fire in the past year for sexual harassment. First Fox chair Roger Ailes, then the network's favorite pundit, Bill O'Reilly, were forced to leave after multiple women complained of unwanted advances—and the blocked advancement they experienced when they didn't put out. (Both men claimed no wrongdoing, although Fox has paid millions to make would-be plaintiffs go away.) Now new charges of racial discrimination have been added to the harassment charges. Eleven Fox employees—current and former—have filed a class-action suit. The suit says the employees made multiple complaints about discrimination and racially derogatory language from specific managers, and that the network never did anything about these behaviors. The network denies it. Far from sucking away resources from angry Americans, a new study from Latino USA says DACA-eligible immigrants provide $2 billion each year in state and local taxes . There's a new philanthropist in town: the New York-based RobinThis Week In Race: Fox Sued, Schools Resegregate, Shea Moisture Gets Thirstyhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-fox-sued-schools-re-segregate-and-shea-moisture-gets-thirsty
74140 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 28 Apr 2017 07:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Fox Sued, Schools Resegregate, Shea Moisture Gets ThirstyKaren Grigsby BatesBe honest: You're looking at this story thinking what else is there to add to reports on the 1992 riots that rocked LA , right? NPR has done anniversary retrospectives before, including a huge look-back on the 20th. But in the past five years, the issue of policing — how it's done, whether it's equitable, what happens when deadly confrontations occur — has become more urgent than ever. And what happened in Los Angeles that April night 25 years ago is a critical part of the current national conversation on policing and race. For the LAPD, there have been huge changes. "I can honestly say the LAPD of 2017 is not your grandfather's LAPD, and it's not the LAPD of Daryl Gates, that 25 years ago, plunged this city into the biggest riot in (modern) American history," says civil rights lawyer Connie Rice. Rice spent a lot of time from the late 1980s through the mid-90s challenging police aggression in the city's communities of color, especially people in poor parts of the city where policing'It's Not Your Grandfather's LAPD' — And That's A Good Thinghttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/its-not-your-grandfathers-lapd-and-thats-good-thing
74068 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgWed, 26 Apr 2017 21:44:00 +0000'It's Not Your Grandfather's LAPD' — And That's A Good ThingKaren Grigsby BatesThe New England Patriots returned to the White House for the now-traditional visit to the president and presentation of a game helmet, jersey and other team-related swag. Correction, some of the Patriots visited the White House. Several, including most famously tight end Martellus Bennett, defensive back Devin McCourty and running back LeGarrette Blount, bowed out early on. (Blount was blunt: "I will NOT be going to the White House. I don't feel welcome in that house. I'll leave it at that," he told the Rich Eisen Show on Feb. 9.) A New York Times photo shows a much smaller number of players this year than last . Oddly, QB Tom Brady, a vocal Trump supporter, stayed away, citing family obligations. And we'll leave it at that. In happy news, a new mosque was inaugurated that is run and led by women but open to all . The women who founded it said Rosa Parks was an inspiration: "It's like when Rosa Parks got tired of sitting in the back of the bus. Women are getting tired of sitting in theThis Week In Race: Guess Who's Not Coming To The White Househttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-guess-whos-not-coming-white-house
73816 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 21 Apr 2017 08:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Guess Who's Not Coming To The White HouseKaren Grigsby BatesA new study from Stanford University's Immigration Policy Lab says giving driver's licenses to people who have entered the country illegally is actually contributing to public safety: licensed drivers are less likely to have hit-and-run accidents . Last week, we told you about how many of the country's police chiefs believed ICE crackdowns would make their jobs harder and hurt public safety. This week California took it a step further: the state Senate passed Bill 54, which limits the cooperation state and local police can give to immigration authorities. The bill, which has unofficially been labeled a "sanctuary state" bill , is expected to easily pass in the Democratic majority State Assembly, and Gov. Jerry Brown, also a Democrat, is expected to sign it. And there's this: ICE is sending shivers through many immigrant communities, which may have serious implications for public health: Fear of deportation can make people sick (constant anxiety can have an ill effect on existingThis Week In Race: Pepsi Challenged; Appropriation Nation; Black Twitter Explainedhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-pepsi-challenged-appropriation-nation-black-twitter-explained
73193 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 07 Apr 2017 08:31:00 +0000This Week In Race: Pepsi Challenged; Appropriation Nation; Black Twitter ExplainedKaren Grigsby BatesBusy week, per always: resistance to deportations, Spicy being salty at the White House, and Muslim Latinas. Yeah, really. The upswing in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) efforts to identify people who are in the country illegally and stage sweeps to deport them has run into a problem: While the president promised police chiefs across the country he would not cut their federal funds, he has now cut their funds — by announcing that cities that declare themselves sanctuary cities will get no financial support from the federal government. And police chiefs are not happy . At all. If immigrants, whatever their status, become too afraid to cooperate with police during criminal investigations in their communities, many heads of police departments say, those communities, and many others, will pay the price in decreased public safety. So the president has a choice: Help the chiefs, which he promised, and go against Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who is tasked with executing theThis Week In Race: A Spicer Dust-Up, Muslim Latinas Speak Out, Blue Men See Redhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-spicy-shakedown-and-guy-named-bill-tried-auntie-maxine
72861 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 31 Mar 2017 13:36:00 +0000This Week In Race: A Spicer Dust-Up, Muslim Latinas Speak Out, Blue Men See RedKaren Grigsby BatesOh people: it's been one of those weeks again. The focus on immigration continues, as the government promises to punish sanctuary cities and cities that have chosen not to do ICE's work for it by detaining undocumented immigrants until that agency can collect them for deportation. A number of police departments, including the LAPD, have indicated widespread fear of deportation in immigrant communities has had deleterious effects on how the police do their jobs. Stories like this one just increase the anxiety . In LA, reports from victims of sexual assaults are down 25 percent from this time last year . The prevailing theory is that victims, many undocumented (or from mixed-status families), are afraid that if they come forward, they'll expose themselves to deportation, which will separate them from their loved ones. And while much of the focus has been on deportations of Latinx, other groups have been under increased scrutiny. The Atlanta Black Star notes black African immigrants —This Week In Race: ICE Sends Chills Across U.S., Kaepernick, Others, Write Big Checkshttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-ice-sends-chills-across-us-kaepernick-others-write-big-checks
72513 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 24 Mar 2017 08:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: ICE Sends Chills Across U.S., Kaepernick, Others, Write Big ChecksKaren Grigsby BatesGive up. You will never, ever catch up with every new TV show that's out there. There's a reason for that, says Melanie McFarland, television critic for Salon: "There were more than 450 new shows that premiered last year across broadcast, cable and streaming." McFarland says she watches hours and hours of television each week, and she's not surprised to see that among the offerings are a number of shows with black main characters and/or storylines that have attracted a whole lot of non-black viewers. According to Nielsen, which regularly tracks American viewing patterns, non-black viewers account for more than 50 percent of the audience for shows like: This Is Us, Black-ish, Secrets and Lies, How To Get Away With Murder, Pitch, Insecure and Atlanta . ABC's How To Get Away With Murder has a 68 percent non-black audience. It's part of the Shonda Rhimes powerhouse lineup of ensemble shows with multiracial casts — Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, Scandal, How to Get Away With Murder andShows With Black Characters Find Loyal Non-Black Fanshttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/shows-black-characters-find-loyal-non-black-fans
72405 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgWed, 22 Mar 2017 08:01:00 +0000Shows With Black Characters Find Loyal Non-Black FansKaren Grigsby BatesDesigners are rolling out their spring lines and the runways are looking more diverse than ever. But the comparative abundance of models who are people of color didn't happen overnight. There was the occasional — very occasional — model who wasn't white in the 50s and early 60s on runways. But African-American models put American couture on the map in 1973 when they walked the runway in France in what's become known as The Battle of Versailles . Almost instantly, black models were The Thing for a brief, halcyon period. But by the mid-80s, with a few glorious exceptions, the catwalks had regained a distinctly milky aspect. Many designers' casting directors — the people choose models for shows — would specify they wanted a "certain look." And for a long time that look was very, very pale. Things got so monochromatic that in 2013 Bethann Hardison, a former model and modeling agency owner, and supermodels Iman and Naomi Campbell formed an organization called Diversity Coalition, to insistOn Fashion Runways, Inclusion Is About More Than Colorhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/fashion-runways-inclusion-about-more-color
72386 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgTue, 21 Mar 2017 21:20:00 +0000On Fashion Runways, Inclusion Is About More Than ColorKaren Grigsby BatesCopyright 2017 NPR. To see more, visit ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: If you asked someone 20 years ago to name a well-known feminist, they might have said Susan B. Anthony or Gloria Steinem or Lily Tomlin. In a recent poll, three of the women mentioned most often are African-American. Karen Grigsby Bates of our Code Switch team has more. KAREN GRIGSBY BATES, BYLINE: The public opinion research firm PerryUndem asked about 1,300 people of different ages, races and genders who they thought the country's most prominent feminists were. Former first lady Michelle Obama topped the list at number one. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) MICHELLE OBAMA: I tell my mentees, I tell my daughters that our first job in life as women, I think, is to get to know ourselves. BATES: And she wasn't alone. PerryUndem principal Tresa Undem lists the names. TRESA UNDEM: First Michelle, then Oprah, then Hillary, then Beyonce. Three of the top four are women of color. BATES: Undem says for the past few years, feminism hasPoll Finds 3 Women Of Color As New Face Of Feminismhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/poll-finds-3-women-color-new-face-feminism
71865 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgMon, 06 Mar 2017 21:32:00 +0000Poll Finds 3 Women Of Color As New Face Of FeminismKaren Grigsby BatesLet's start with Sunday night, because, how could we not? You already know about the Moonlight cock-up (leave it to the British to give us a perfect word for what that was), but did you know this: although Moonlight 's Mahershala Ali was described as the first Muslim to win an Academy Award, Pakistan isn't having it. Apparently, the sect to which Ali belongs is outlawed in Pakistan. The Atlantic broke it down for us . Then the next day, all hell broke loose over another picture — although it's probably not being described as a best picture. Kellyanne Conway's sofa-straddle in the Oval got the internet talking. And inspired some terriffic memes. The awkwardness occurred when the counselor to the president was in the room as a couple dozen presidents of HBCUs were ushered in to meet POTUS. Hard to tell from the photo who was more pleased. But apparently a lot of people weren't pleased by what they saw as a Ms. Conway's breach of etiquette. As usual, Awesomely Luvvie came with the crispyThis Week In Race: Best Picture, Worst Picture, Picturing Trump's Americahttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-best-picture-worst-picture-picturing-trumps-america
71741 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 03 Mar 2017 11:01:00 +0000This Week In Race: Best Picture, Worst Picture, Picturing Trump's AmericaKaren Grigsby BatesHarvard historian Caroline Light grew up with guns. Her family lived in Southwestern Virginia, and her parents regularly enjoyed hunting and shooting skeet (clay targets). They used guns on a recreational basis, not for what Light calls "do-it-yourself self-defense." Yet that's precisely what millions of Americans are doing — arming themselves with guns on the off chance that they will need them. Several versions of "stand your ground laws," which allow individuals to use lethal force if they fear for their lives, have grown exponentially in the past few decades. The law's premise stems from a "kill-or-be-killed" philosophy, Light says, that has become "an ideology, and ideal, that's been rapidly spreading throughout the United States for a while." Light's new book, Stand Your Ground: A History of America's Love Affair With Lethal Self-Defense, looks at how stand your ground descended from 17 th century English common law. The so-called Castle Doctrine decreed that a man (women andStand Your Ground Laws Complicate Matters For Black Gun Ownershttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/stand-your-ground-laws-complicate-matters-black-gun-owners
71550 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgMon, 27 Feb 2017 19:10:00 +0000Stand Your Ground Laws Complicate Matters For Black Gun OwnersKaren Grigsby Bateshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2JbO9lnVLE POTUS Yanks The Welcome Mat The effects of the Trump administration's deportation sweeps will be felt, of course, most immediately by the people who are caught up in them. But as many conservatives are applauding the president's effort to make good on his campaign promise to rid the country of people who are here illegally, they may start to feel the results of that campaign in unanticipated ways. For instance, Eater has a good piece on the interconnected nature of immigrant labor and the price of the food in supermarkets and restaurants. If the human-rights aspect of the issue doesn't interest you, the prospect of $8 avocados and double-digit fast food might. And as the week has shown, having DACA status is no guarantee that an immigrant is safe from deportation, as KPCC reports. Nor are asylum-seekers. Meanwhile, the sweeps have caused widespread anxiety in Latino communities — and eager anticipation in at least one business, according toThis Week In Race: Immigration Headaches, Oscar Glow And POTUS At The Blacksonianhttp://peoriapublicradio.org/post/week-race-immigration-headaches-oscar-glow-and-potus-blacksonian
71423 as http://peoriapublicradio.orgFri, 24 Feb 2017 14:05:00 +0000This Week In Race: Immigration Headaches, Oscar Glow And POTUS At The Blacksonian